Most women jump from diet to diet and it feels like nothing works. They then blame themselves for not having enough willpower and feel stuck, inflamed and exhausted. This can lead to immense amounts of frustration. 

What they don’t realize is that statistically, this is what happens to most women. Which should lead us to question the diets themselves. 

Today I’m going to review why most diets fail and it feels like nothing is working for you and five principles my team of Dietitians incorporate into our nutrition approach that changes the outcomes. 

This is coming from 11 years of experience as a Registered Dietitian with a board certification in Integrative and Functional Nutrition. I trained at the Cleveland Clinic, taught in academia for more than seven years and have reviewed thousands of lab tests and supported tens of thousands of women in my nutrition programs. 

1-It Is Impossible to Know Who to Trust

Everyone on the internet claims to be a “nutrition expert”. You have influencers, personal trainers, chiropractors, doctors, naturopaths — all giving nutrition recommendations. But most are not true experts. A friend recently showed me labs reviewed by a chiropractor who told her that olive oil and almonds were driving high omega-6 levels in her blood. Having reviewed thousands of omega-3 and omega-6 panels, I can tell you that is simply not accurate.

It’s extremely important for you to do your research on who you’re trusting on the internet and who you’re working with when it comes to a practitioner. Today a lot of people sound legitimate when they truly are not. 

2-Stop Using the Scale as the Only Metric of your Health

Most diets advertise weight loss because it sells. They put you in a large caloric deficit, and over time your metabolism slows, your hunger hormones push back, and you regain the weight. This cycle often ends up worse off than where you started. Women with a history of yo-yo dieting have measurably slower metabolisms than those who don’t.

The sustainability that we find in clients that we work with who come through our programs is really in focusing on all of the other aspects. You have a lot of complex systems working together. You have your genes, microbes, immune cells, neurotransmitters, hormones and so much more. There are so many variables and your nutrition plan should be one that helps to improve all of these systems and your lab markers. 

I’ve seen this play out in clients who lost 30 pounds on a restrictive diet, yet their LDL cholesterol kept rising, their GI symptoms worsened, and their inflammation increased. Your nutrition plan needs to improve all of your markers — cardiovascular health, hormones, gut health, inflammation — not just the number on the scale.

3-There’s a Difference Between Nutrient Consumption and Nutrient Absorption

Eating healthy doesn’t automatically mean you’re absorbing what you’re eating. If you have an imbalanced gut microbiome or chronic stress, your body’s ability to absorb nutrients is significantly impaired — even if you’re shopping at Whole Foods and following an anti-inflammatory meal plan.

And nutrient deficiencies are a contributor to increased nervous system dysregulation, inflammation and more. Sometimes the issue is that the nutrition program you’re following only focuses on calories or macros and doesn’t factor in vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. Other times it means that you are regularly consuming these compounds but you aren’t absorbing them fully. 

Start with slowing down with your meals, trying to sit, be present for your meals, chew your food more thoroughly. This helps with putting yourself into a parasympathetic state where you’re in more of a rest and digest state, allowing your body to more easily absorb those nutrients. 

And then consider testing your nutrient deficiencies. When clients in our My Food is Health program see their nutrient deficiency testing, they’re often shocked to find significant deficiencies despite years of clean eating. Rather than throwing a handful of random supplements at the problem, the key is to test, not guess. This allows you to take a strategic, targeted approach based on what’s actually happening in YOUR body.

4-Stop Following Generic Elimination Diets Without Factoring in Biochemical Individuality 

Everyone is different, and nutrition needs to be approached through that lens. While science-backed frameworks that we include in The Being Collective–like eating 30 grams of fiber daily, enough protein, and 30+ plants per week — can get most women meaningful results, there is no single plan that works for everyone.

Women often come to us after trying the Whole30, a functional medicine elimination protocol, or some other cookie-cutter approach with partial success but no lasting relief. That’s usually because their plan wasn’t tailored to their specific history and labs, and it wasn’t paired with targeted supplementation. Those two elements together are what create the catalyst for real, lasting change. And most people don’t realize that there are a variety of elimination diets that can be tailored to your needs–from a low FODMAP approach to low histamine to metabolic support to thyroid support and more. 

5-Focus on your Mindset 

Mindset is one of the most underestimated reasons women struggle to sustain results long-term. Viewing food as “good” or “bad,” striving for perfection, and falling into the “I already blew it, might as well keep going” cycle keeps women stuck in the same patterns regardless of which plan they’re following.

In working with thousands of women — including Fortune 500 CEOs, senators, and bestselling authors — I’ve seen that mindset is consistently one of the biggest levers for long-term habit change. Following a list of foods that are right or wrong or good or bad will never help you dial in the mindset that you need to take your health to the next level. The goal is to build a healthy, enjoyable relationship with food rooted in consistency over perfection, where nourishing your body feels like a lifestyle rather than a food prison.

Book a Discovery Call with My Dietitians  

If you’re craving a deeper approach into your own personal needs with my team of Dietitians that involves looking under the hood and running nutrient deficiency lab testing, we would love to support you! 

We have a few spots available for our in-depth, personalized program–My Food is Health. Schedule a discovery call to see if it aligns with your needs. 

Because this requires so much Dietitian time, we have very limited spots so please only book if you are ready to go deeper and make the financial investment.